Rose America

This very special twist on a rose fragrance is not for those looking for soft and demure. The beauty of the salty Turkish rose makes it a twin to Rose Saltifolia from Maison Crivelli, but the performance outshines it by a long shot. The tart raspberry twist means it could be a cousin to Bibliotheque from Byredo. And the ambrette, carnation & heliotrope give it a vintage yet libidinous character that surpasses expectations. Imagine wandering into the dressing room of that one great aunt (you know, the pretty one who never re-married, but travelled the world and had many “friends”), finding a worn copy of Anais Nin on her vanity table, and opening it up to discover roses, carnations and heliotrope pressed between the pages. That’s what this fragrance gives: Properly lusty, antique femininity. It opens with a salty rose that has a sprinkle of tart from the raspberry, before being joined by the clove-esque carnation. Add the musky and almond-sweet ambrette and heliotrope and there is underlying depth and a bit of an animalic touch. I’d see myself wearing this on a rainy spring day, to an arthouse film, at sunset drinks on a beach house deck, or for a stroll through a public garden. This rose fragrance is not a cliche. Her rosiness is neither ingenue nor dowager. Ms Rose America here just knows a thing or two because she has seen it and been there and that is why she remains true to her vivacious self.

This is a magnificent and unique rose, and I'm so in love with it. The scent is inspired by the landscape in Montauk, USA. It's the smell of wild roses growing near the ocean, along a rugged coastline with cliffs, beaches and salty, sundried rocks. The rose in this is salty as well. And I can smell pebbles warmed by the sun and something that reminds me of a faint peppery smokiness in the air - like someone has lit a bonfire down on the beach, in the sunset. I believe this peppery, smoky feeling comes from the carnation - because I can smell the exact same thing in Oriza Legrand Royal Oeillet, which is a carnation centric scent. I've never smelled a rose like this before, It is so surprising. This is not a rose that goes with pearls and lace and mink - but a stormy, windy rose that is accompanied by grey skies, tall waves and heaps of driftwood. It's the smell of "The Old Man and the Sea" by Ernest Hemmingway, if it came with a complementary bouquet of roses. And I absolutely adore it! It's a gorgeous rose scent! Sillage is between soft and medium on me, and longevity is medium as well (it could have been a bit better in my opinion) - I get about 5 hours out of it. Definitely a new scent on my wish list.

Big fan of this dry rose with some marine aledhydic notes. The carnation adds this spicy floral note to it, but it's not quite the same as having a cardamom note fully in it. This is still floral primarily, a dry rose finally that doesn't have patchouli! Exactly what I was looking for. Can be worn by men or women. It projects well but doesn't cause a headache or feel overpowering. It is not very powdery (I don't like powdery) and it is not synthetic, which is what I found Initio Atomic Rose to be horribly synthetic without any real rose scent in there. This is the natural rose you want, like being outside in a field of roses next to the water in a dry rocky terrain. Which, I think, is exactly what they were going for with the description. This is not your "fruity floral" feminine scent. But it's not an older woman deep jammy rose either. It's the real scent of rose, bottled up and blended well.

I've tried four out of seven samples and I'm in love with three of them, all sampled from Un Nuit Bali and Un Nuit Montauk. Really interesting compositions, combining notes that you wouldn't think would go together. Annick Menardo is my new favorite perfumer (I realize she's well respected but I never paid attention to her until now). With Rose America Menardo combined salt, ocean accords and rose to create something incomparable. Also seems she is working with high end ingredients with very natural and realistic results. This ends up feeling like a spicy salty dry red rose. I'm really left with no words other than masterpiece.

Wow! Gorgeous, and unique, fresh, mineral, yet sweet powdery scent! Love the combination of the notes! Haven’t smelled anything like this before. This is not a safe blind buy, tho, because of the mineral notes and the carnation. It’s unisex, but leans more feminine, due to the sweet raspberry heliotrope. Overall, this scent it’s worth sniffing, if you’re looking for something different.